Meghan Markle is ‘absolutely still involved’ with her patronage Smart Works since her move to LA and ‘always brings great ideas to the table’, reveals CEO
- CEO of Meghan Markle’s, 38, patronage Smart Works opened up about royal
- Kate Stephens praised Duchess of Sussex for bringing ‘great ideas’ to the table
- Said: ‘Whenever she comes, she gets involved in dressing and coaching clients’
Meghan Markle is ‘absolutely still involved’ with her patronage Smart Works since her move to Los Angeles, the charity’s CEO has revealed.
Kate Stephens said the Duchess of Sussex, 38, who is currently living in Tyler Perry’s $18 million mansion in Los Angeles having stepped back from royal duty, remains dedicated to the charity.
Speaking to The Flock, Kate revealed: ‘Whenever she comes to see us, she always gets involved in dressing and coaching our clients as well as bringing her ideas to the table too.’
Despite stepping back from royal duties alongside Prince Harry, 35, in March, Meghan has been permitted to maintain her patronages.
Kate Stephens, who works as CEO of Meghan Markle’s patronage Smart Works, has revealed how the Duchess of Sussex, 38, is ‘still absolutely involved’, despite stepping back from royal duty (pictured together at the launch of Smart Set in 2019)
Kate revealed how Meghan began visiting Smart Works ahead of the royal wedding in May 2018, when she was getting to know different charities in the UK.
The CEO explained that the Duchess ‘really connected’ with the mission of the charity and it’s work.
She said: ‘She saw the impact we were able to have, in terms of both the clothes and the coaching, in helping women.’
Kate detailed how Meghan continued to work with the charity over a year before she was announced as their patron.
Kate revealed how Meghan always ‘gets involved in dressing and coaching our clients’ during visits to her patronage (pictured, during a visit in January 2019)
Meghan has remained dedicated to her patronage throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
In April, she coached a young interviewee via video link, telling her to be a beacon of hope and positivity.’
In a video clip released on the charity’s Instagram page, the Duchess could be seen chatting virtually to an unnamed woman who was applying for an internship after completing her studies in psychology.
She praised the youngster for her positive attitude, saying ‘there’s so much going on in the world right now’ but she was being a ‘beacon of hope and all the positivity.’
The Duchess has made a series of private visits to the organisation over the last two years (pictured, visiting last spring)
Meghan privately visited Smart Works several times before being named as its royal patron in January last year and has a long-standing commitment to supporting women’s empowerment.
The Duchess launched the Smart Set collection last September, which saw every item sold by the retailers matched with one item donated to SmartWorks.
At the launch of the collection, Meghan’s best friend and designer Misha Nonoo credited the royal with coming up with the idea for the project herself.
Smart Works have a team of 300 trained volunteers and helps long-term unemployed and vulnerable women regain the skills, confidence and tools to succeed at job interviews, return to employment and transform their lives.